Abel to Yzerman

There’s no place like home for DET (35-17-2). The Wings look to reach 18 consecutive home wins tonight, it is the league’s longest home win streak in nearly 36 years. The Wings sparkling 20-2-1 home record is due in large part to their blistering home scoring, they are averaging a whopping 3.83 goals per game at JLA, as opposed to only 2.52 goals per game on the road. And the good news is that DET finish their schedule with 18 of their remaining 28 games at the Joe, and tonights tilt with the Oil (21-27-5) starts a 6 game home stand for the club.

The Wings will be looking for a little payback against the Oil after dropping last Saturdays game, 4-5, at EDM in the shootout. Tonights tilt shouldn’t be too much trouble as the Oil are a league worst 6-19-2 on the road. However, the Oil’s 22.0% PP (2) against the Wings gawd-awful 80.0% PK (25) will likely keep things closer than they should be.

Comments

Wings VS bottom dwellers…goalies not so hot….players that should step a notch (Hudler, Fil, Z, White)...problems in their zones…this game will help my team in the standing! The Wings will not win this one

Posted by
MARIO
from CHICAGO on 02/08/12 at 10:14 AM ET

Honestly, even with no Howard, anything less than a complete and utter curbstomping of the Oilers is going to be a huge disappointment to myself and a lot of others. The PHX game already was.. If the team doesn’t wake up for this game, I think we can safely write off any kind of a playoff run for the team, because they won’t have the heart.

Wings VS bottom dwellers…goalies not so hot….players that should step a notch (Hudler, Fil, Z, White)...problems in their zones…this game will help my team in the standing! The Wings will not win this one

Posted by MARIO from CHICAGO on 02/08/12 at 08:14 AM ET

If you’re referring to the Hawks… you’re kidding right? Lost 6 in a row? Have won the same number of games in their last ten (3) as Columbus? There isn’t one game that can possibly help the Hawks in the standings at the moment…

To sum up, Zona points out the obvious regarding Willis’ recent Edmonton Journal article about the Red Wings “not drafting that many NHL players” and questioning the success rate: while the Oilers (nd many other teams) have iced more draft picks on their big club, the Red Wings dozen or so are actually REALLY GOOD.

Are we really so obssessed with sheer numbers that somebody thinks the Oilers draft better than the Wings just because the Oilers chew up and spit out new draft picks that didn’t pan out every year, and thus have a higher count of how many made the NHL?

No, I’m talking about the play where they go 3-deep out at the blue line, puck on one side, and they pass it across towards the middle guy and he has the option to one-time it or let it through him for the other d-man to shoot it instead while still acting like he’s going to shoot.
Posted by Primis on 02/08/12 at 07:14 AM ET

Yeah that is awful.

Posted by
RWBill
from the Babcock school of cheese grabbing. on 02/08/12 at 02:22 PM ET

Congrats Rambo, and family. And here’s hoping for a soon to be homecoming from Afghanistan.

Posted by
RWBill
from the Babcock school of cheese grabbing. on 02/08/12 at 02:26 PM ET

G’morning, Jeff. A coffee and your GDT is an excellent start to the day.

However, the Oil’s 22.0% PP (2) against the Wings gawd-awful 80.0% PK (25) will likely keep things closer than they should be.

Shnarky. Unreal how home is so different from the road. They keep saying, “We need to do the things we do so well at home to be done on the road.” And it’s just not happening.

Two points. Need them at the most right now with the six-game homestand.

Referees:
Chris Lee (#28)
Ian Walsh (#29)

Linesmen:
David Brisebois (#96)
Greg Devorski (#54)

Oh damn. Brisebois. If there’s ever a linesman who knows how to blow an offsides call, it’s this guy.

Posted by
SYF
from Twerkin' with Anastasia Ashley on 02/08/12 at 02:33 PM ET

PS - Congrats and a toast to you and your boys, Jeff. Outstanding.

Posted by
SYF
from Twerkin' with Anastasia Ashley on 02/08/12 at 02:35 PM ET

If it’s true that the assistant coaches are responsible for the scheming and performance of the special teams, then both of them shold be unemployed by June 15 unless there’s a turnaround ( The Head Coach is responsible for everything, yes).

The Power Play is unspeakably bad, incompetence that is totally baffling and inexplicable. The PK is 25th, is that what I saw last game? I’m on the iPad on the John and won’t take time to look it up right now. Sure it’s not like this team was in 2002 with HOF’ers on the 3rd line, but neither is this team rebuilding from a long stint as cellar dwellars and is without much NHL talent.

Do we miss Patrick Eaves that much? Love the guy, but everyone else out on the ice on the PK should be nailing it. The 5x5 GF GA is great, no reason for such Sucky special teams.

Posted by
RWBill
from the Babcock school of cheese grabbing. on 02/08/12 at 02:39 PM ET

The Power Play is unspeakably bad, incompetence that is totally baffling and inexplicable.

The odd thing is that at the beginning of the year it was really good, wasn’t it?

I think he meant power play, which I have the impression was scoring once a game for a long stretch.

I think every Red Wing fan alive and watching last game would have been shocked had they scored in a minute and a half 5x3. Was the most inept and passive sorry ass excuse for exploiting a 2 man advantage that I have ever seen.

It would have been more threatening to designate a hero who doesn’t mind contact, I nominate Abdelkader, and tell him to gather in the puck at the blue line and just skate as hard as possible toward the net, and as he is being unmercifully tripped and hacked as the defense collapses on him, shove the puck at the goal as he is falling to the ice for the others to swarm around and hack at, creating massive chaos in front of the net, which is more than they accomplished playing keep away without shooting when 2 men up. Youve got to get the defense moving and create disorder. They did none of that.

Very disturbing.

Posted by
RWBill
from the Babcock school of cheese grabbing. on 02/08/12 at 03:29 PM ET

Win one for the Rambo. Here’s the boy getting sworn in last week. More good news, Jeff Jr. should be out of Afghanistan by the end of this month!

The Yotes PP goal that made it nil-2 is the very perfect example of PP execution and I cannot believe I’m saying that. I will remember that play for as long as this group of coaches and players continue to look inept.

It was that good.

Posted by
SYF
from Twerkin' with Anastasia Ashley on 02/08/12 at 04:12 PM ET

Very disturbing.
Posted by RWBill from the Land of 12 in 12. on 02/08/12 at 01:29 PM ET

The 19 is getting to you Bill! PP is abysmal, an embarassing PK, Z is as colder than a UP winter and our road record, esp vs. bottom feeders is a complete disaster….and yet we’re in first place. We can still be a great team, and still win a Cup with this team. It just doesn’t seem that way right now. Let’s not forget we can make some moves before the deadline and maybe find some one who makes things click for us.

Posted by
Sullyosis
from A hateful lair in Post Apocalyptic US (or Arizona) on 02/08/12 at 06:03 PM ET

Z is as colder than a UP winter

we have had 40+ days the last three days. nights are cold, single digits.

is an afternoon game scheduled? nope not in the foreseeable future. not until the 19th, and we play some fish at 12:30. so much for Z getting hot soon, or even lukewarm.

the best news aboot the upcoming week or so? all them games at home.

the bad news aboot the upcoming week or so? when will jimmy be back.

Posted by
TheRealYooper
from within sight of the edge of the Earth. on 02/08/12 at 06:15 PM ET

Anyone, when was the last time the Wings made a concerted effort to work the puck down low?

Posted by Jeff OKWingnut from Quest for 12 on 02/08/12 at 01:56 PM ET

Hard to recall. Maybe against the Bruins. Last season. The home and home games.

The 19 is getting to you Bill!
Posted by Sullyosis from A hateful lair in Post Apocalyptic US (or Arizona) on 02/08/12 at 04:03 PM ET

Yes, I was going to say usually I am one who will point out, ” you bitches check out who’s in first place”, but the lack of any idea how to attack with a 2 man advantage was one of the most hideous things I’ve ever witnessed ( not really, pro-Iranian Shia terrorists setting off 7 truck bombs across Kuwait at the same time, including the American Embassy where I worked every afternoon, is probably above the Wings power play on that list ).

Yes I will add they didn’t have much puck luck or friendly bounces vs PHX, but they won 6 or 7 shootouts in a row so things will level out a bit, and besides, they should bury teams like edMonton and Phoenix.

Posted by
RWBill
from the Babcock school of cheese grabbing. on 02/08/12 at 06:29 PM ET

Paging Admiral Ackbar:
The Oilers have lost seven straight and 14 of their last 15 road games. At 6-19-2, Edmonton owns the worst road record in hockey this season.
Posted by Jeff OKWingnut from Quest for 12 on 02/08/12 at 05:26 PM ET

About Abel to Yzerman

Welcome to Abel to Yzerman, a Red Wing blog since 1977. No other site on the internet has better-researched, fact-laden and better prepared discussions than A2Y. Re-phrase: we do little research, find facts and stats highly overrated and claim little to no preparation. There are 19 readers of A2Y. No more, no less. All of them, except maybe one, are juvenile in nature. Reminding them of that in the comment section will only encourage them to prove that. Your suggestions and critiques are welcome: wphoulihan@gmail.com